Cognitive function

Special edition: Omega-3

Aurora Algae ups ante in omega-3 market with plans for Q4, 2012 launch

23-Aug-2011 By Elaine Watson

Aurora Algae – the firm promising to turn up the heat in the algal omega-3 market by producing a concentrated 65% EPA-rich oil on a completely new scale – aims to ship out its first commercial products in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Cognitive function market set to explode, predicts researcher

22-Aug-2011 By Elaine Watson

The market for ingredients that can help keep our brains healthy as we age is “set to explode” in the next five to 10 years, according to one researcher.

Special edition: Omega-3

All-conquering omega-3 market set for further growth

18-Aug-2011 By Stephen Daniells

The market for omega-3 food, beverage and supplements in the US is over $5 billion with saturation point nowhere in sight, but how does the market break down, what are the up-and-coming sources, and where will we go in future?

Neptune promises productivity boost as sales rise but profits slide

17-Aug-2011 By Elaine Watson

Canadian krill oil firm Neptune Technologies & Bioressources posted a modest rise in revenues in the first quarter of 2012 but said its bottom line had suffered owing to changes in exchange rates, a switch to International Financial Reporting Standards...

AlgaeBio unveils production stats as algal omega-3 market heats up

17-Aug-2011 By Elaine Watson

Algae Biosciences Corporation – a high-profile new entrant to the omega-3 fatty acid market – has unveiled detailed figures on anticipated production volumes after finalizing a deal to build the first phase of its new production facility near Holbrook...

Aker BioMarine aims to launch ‘unique’ powdered krill product by year-end

17-Aug-2011 By Elaine Watson

Aker BioMarine is aiming to launch a novel powdered product from Antarctic krill “without using expensive and dilutive microencapsulation technology” by the end of this year.

Melatonin brownie maker: ‘We’ll sell them as supplements’

04-Aug-2011 By Elaine Watson

The maker of the melatonin-laced ‘relaxation’ brownies at the center of a debate over where a dietary supplement ends and a food begins says it will make “all necessary changes to market and sell the product as a supplement”.

Folic acid link to post-natal depression may be genetic

01-Aug-2011 By Jess Halliday

Folic acid supplements during pregnancy might help protect against worsening depression up to 21 months after giving birth, especially in women with a genotype that influences folate metabolism, suggests a new study.

Enzymotec USA notches up double-digit growth for krill oil

27-Jul-2011 By Elaine Watson

The US arm of Israeli biotech firm Enzymotec says it is confident of sustaining double-digit growth in sales of krill oil as awareness of its multiple benefits grows.

Dormant antioxidant has ‘unparalleled’ benefits

26-Jul-2011 By Elaine Watson

A Beverly Hills-based biotech firm is planning to launch a series of supplements and functional foods containing ergothioneine, an antioxidant it claims has “unparalleled” benefits that has hidden its light under a bushel for almost 100 years.

ChromaDex: We’ll do for nicotinamide riboside what we did for pterostilbene

25-Jul-2011 By Elaine Watson

Nicotinamide riboside (NR) - the latest addition to ChromaDex’s bioactive ingredients stable – will follow a similar development path to pterostilbene, a compound found in blueberries it has synthesized to create a branded ingredient called pTeroPure.

New entrant set to shake up algal omega-3 market

25-Jul-2011 By Elaine Watson

A new player is poised to enter the vegetarian omega-3 market with a production process it claims will enable it to make the long chain fatty acids EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) from algae at a fraction of the cost of rivals.

Schiff Nutrition to step away from ‘crazy’ private label contracts

22-Jul-2011 By Elaine Watson

Schiff Nutrition will continue to play in the private label supplements market but will “step away” from “crazy” tenders and pump all available funds into its brands from MegaRed krill oil to Sustenex probiotics, bosses have revealed.

Vitamin C shows eyes & brain health potential: Study

18-Jul-2011 By Stephen Daniells

One of the nutrition industry’s biggest sellers – vitamin C – may help nerve cells in the eye to function properly, says a new study that suggests the vitamin may also be important for brain function, too.

Dairy phospholipids may help stress-related memory problems: Study

13-Jul-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Memory problems associated with chronic stress may be eased by phospholipids derived from milk, suggests a new study.

Martek predicts double-digit rise in sales to food & bev market

08-Jul-2011 By Elaine Watson

Martek expects sales of its algal-sourced omega-3s to food and drink manufacturers to grow in the double-digits each year for the next four to five years as it broadens its product range and gains access to new markets and customers post its takeover...

Back to school: Why history offers lessons for nutrition’s future

06-Jul-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Understanding how our ancestors ate and appreciating what nutrients we need from an evolutionary perspective is finally getting the headlines it deserves – the nutrition industry should take note.

Food for thought? Probiotics could promote well being, suggests researcher

06-Jul-2011 By Nathan Gray

Relying on your gut to make decisions may have a lot of truth to it, as research suggests that probiotic modification of the gut may influence the brain and affect mood.

Earlier the better for omega-3 benefits for brains & hearts?

04-Jul-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Supplements of omega-3 fatty acids for brain and heart health may need to be provided early in life to produce any benefits, suggests a new study with rats.

GOED/Neptune: Krill monograph will help firms detect genuine article

30-Jun-2011 By Elaine Watson

Another leading supplier has weighed into the debate over unscrupulous firms peddling ‘krill oil’ that contains “next to no phospholipids” but says the development of a monograph and better testing protocols might go some way to tackling the problem.

Fake krill undermines whole market, warns Aker Biomarine

29-Jun-2011 By Elaine Watson

Unscrupulous firms peddling ‘krill oil’ that contains “next to no phospholipids” risk denting confidence in the efficacy of krill and the broader omega-3 market, a leading supplier has warned.

Lest we forget: Bible inspires cinnamon extract Alzheimer’s study

28-Jun-2011 By Shane Starling

A cinnamon bark extract called CEppt can slow the onset of Alzheimer’s, according to Israeli researchers who studied its effect in mice and fruit flies after taking inspiration from a biblical passage.

Clarinol, Marinol and PinnoThin to get boost Stateside

24-Jun-2011 By Elaine Watson

The new owner of body-shaping Clarinol CLA, appetite-suppressing PinnoThin pine nut oil and heart/brain healthy Marinol omega-3s says sales should grow significantly as it increases their distribution Stateside.

B12 breath test may ease deficiency diagnosis

23-Jun-2011 By Nathan Gray

A new breath test for the diagnosis of vitamin B12 deficiency may allow for a cheaper, faster, and more accurate diagnosis, according to new research.

Neptune to almost quadruple krill oil capacity by 2014

23-Jun-2011 By Elaine Watson

Canadian krill oil firm Neptune Technologies & Bioressources aims to ratchet up production capacity from 130,000kg/year to almost 500,000kg by 2014 to meet growing demand.

Atrium commits $5 million to nutrition research for metabolic syndrome

21-Jun-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Canada’s Atrium Innovations has announced a multi-million, multi-year research initiative to study the role and potential of nutrition against silent inflammation and metabolic syndrome.

US Army ‘concerned’ over excessive supplement use amongst soldiers

20-Jun-2011 By Stephen Daniells in New Orleans

The US Army has established a specialized group to deal with nutritional supplements amid concerns over the excess of supplements being taken, says a leading US Army researcher.

Quercetin has ‘negligible influence’ on disease risk: Study

15-Jun-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Short-term supplementation with quercetin, a compound found in apples and onions, does not affect a person’s disease risk, according to results of a human study.

Pycnogenol retail value tops $500m as double-digit growth continues

10-Jun-2011 By Elaine Watson

The retail value of products containing Pycnogenol, a potent antioxidant from the bark of the French maritime pine tree, is estimated to top $500m, according to bosses at producer Horphag Research.

GOED: US food manufacturers want clarity on omega-3 DRIs

09-Jun-2011 By Elaine Watson

Global omega-3 EPA and DHA organization GOED has heard positive signs that if and when a new Institute of Medicine (IOM) dietary reference intake (DRI) project is commissioned in the US, omega-3s will be “near the top of the list”.

Dispatches from Vitafoods Europe 2011

WWF on krill: "World’s largest under-exploited fishery"

08-Jun-2011 By Shane Starling

Krill provides only a small link in the omega-3 supply chain, but the sustainability of the Antarctic fishery is regularly brought under the spotlight, often unfairly says the WWF.

Accelerated time technology may unlock our long-term nutritional needs

08-Jun-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Technology that can speed up biological time may reveal the existence of hundreds of ‘vitamins’, and provide scientific evidence for how long-term nutrient intake affects the risk of chronic disease, says the executive chairman of a Silicon Valley company...

BASF ups ante in race to develop plant-sourced EPA/DHA

08-Jun-2011 By Elaine Watson

BASF is confident it can bring a canola oil to market with sufficient levels of the coveted long-chain omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA to make heart health claims by the end of the decade.

Omega-3 in food & drink set to ‘boom’, says Packaged Facts

02-Jun-2011 By Elaine Watson

US retail sales of food and drink products making omega-3 claims shot up 11 percent in 2010 to approach the $4bn mark and are predicted to be worth almost $7bn by 2015, according to new research.

Dow: DHA from canola oil still ‘some years away’

31-May-2011 By Elaine Watson

Dow Agrosciences and Martek Biosciences (now part of DSM) are progressing well with plans to develop canola oil containing the coveted long-chain omega-3 fatty acid DHA, but are still “a number of years” away from bringing something to market.

Strawberry extracts may prevent inflammation: Study

25-May-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Compounds found in strawberries may decrease levels of inflammatory markers and reduce the risk of a range of conditions, including metabolic syndrome, suggests a new study.

Science builds for attention boosting potential of Cognizin Citicoline

18-May-2011

A daily 250 milligram dose of Kyowa Hakko’s Cognizin Citicoline ingredient may be effective for improving attention, suggest new findings from the University of Utah Brain Institute.

Omega-3 may reduce depression symptoms in the elderly: Study

18-May-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Daily omega-3 supplements may reduce the occurrence of the symptoms of depression in elderly women, says a new study from Italy that adds to the ongoing debate over omega-3 and mood.

Functional overdrive: General Mills woos hearts, minds and stomachs

18-May-2011 By Elaine Watson

General Mills has signaled its intention to make a bold move into the functional foods market with new products targeting cardiovascular health, cognitive function and weight management.

Brain food ripe for growth, but who will lead the charge?

12-May-2011 By Elaine Watson

Cognitive function is the functional foods category where the gap between interest and buying behavior is the widest, suggesting there are big bucks to be made, but only if firms can come up with products consumers can trust.

L-theanine may boost attention for anxious folks: Study

11-May-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Daily supplements of L-theanine, an amino acid found in tea, may help people with anxiety focus on their daily activities, suggests a new study from Japan.

Green tea extract shows memory boosting activity: Study

04-May-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Daily supplements of a green tea extract may boost mental alertness and enhance memory, according to a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study from Korea.

Omega-3 may slash levels of heart disease risk factor

29-Apr-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Supplements of omega-3 fatty acids are associated with lower levels of an amino acid called homocysteine, an amino acid linked to increased risks of heart disease and dementia, says a new meta-analysis of the scientific evidence.

Special edition: Inflammation

The rise of anti-inflammatory nutrients

19-Apr-2011 By Stephen Daniells

In the first part of our special series on inflammation, NutraIngredients puts the physiological process of inflammation under the microscope, and casts an eye over the nutritional approaches to counter rising inflammation.

Big Interview: Marc Stover, Twinlab

Twinlab predicts double-digit growth in 2011 on back of ‘aggressive’ new marketing push

18-Apr-2011 By Elaine Watson

Dietary supplements and sports nutrition giant Twinlab grew sales more than 10% last year and predicts another year of double-digit growth in 2011 as it aggressively ramps up marketing following a deal with sporting legend Ray Lewis.

Acai juice shows joint health potential: Monavie study

13-Apr-2011 By Stephen Daniells

A daily glass of acai juice was associated with a reduction in joint pain measures, and this was correlated with improved blood antioxidant levels, says a new study using MonaVie Active.

Omega-3 DHA safe and ‘modestly beneficial’ for infants: Study

07-Apr-2011 By Stephen Daniells

High doses of the omega-3 fatty acid DHA in baby formula or breast milk may have ‘modest, positive effects’ on the growth of the pre-term infants, including increased length, says a new study from Australia.

Citrus flavonoids show anti-inflammatory potential: Study

05-Apr-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Increased intakes of compounds called flavonoids from citrus may be associated with lower levels of markers of inflammation, according to a new study from researchers at Harvard, Sweden and Singapore.

Special Edition: Nutrigenomics

Is epigenetics the ‘means’ to achieving nutrition’s potential?

25-Mar-2011 By Stephen Daniells

Understanding and achieving nutrition’s potential to maintain health and prevent disease may lie with the study of epigenetics, according to a new review.

Beta-carotene research shows conflicting results; dose and duration questions remain

16-Mar-2011 By Rachel Leah Blumenthal in Boston

Conflicting results of large-scale longitudinal carotenoid studies raise questions of effective dosage and treatment duration, according to speakers at New Developments in Carotenoids Research.